The State of South Dakota has many areas and facilities, including several in the State Capitol itself, available for public events, weddings, and displays. Use of these facilities requires prior application and approval by the Office of the Commissioner of the Bureau of Administration.

Visitors to the State Capitol may tour the Capitol on their own with guidance from a self-guided tour script available in the Capitol building, or by pre-scheduling a guided tour provided upon prior request from a volunteer tour guide. A minimum 24-hours advanced notice is requested for guided tours.

On June 25, 1908 when the corner stone for the South Dakota State Capitol was laid, Governor Coe Crawford said in his address: "The new capitol will do more than comfortably accommodate the officers who are to labor within its walls for the people whom they will serve. It will stand throughout the coming years as an expression of beauty and art, and as the people come and go and linger within its walls, they will see in it an expression of the soul of the state."